Just 24 hours after defeating reigning champion John Isner, No. 6 seed Jenson Brooksby continued his momentum in the Atlanta Open, topping No. 4 seed Frances Tiafoe 6-1, 6-4 in the second semifinal Saturday night at Atlantic Station.
Since turning professional, Brooksby has lost two finals. Falling last year in the Hall of Fame Open and this year in the Dallas Open. Now he gets another opportunity.
“It’s always staying in the present for me and right now, I feel I’m in a very good headspace and a good mentality like last year and just hope to keep bringing that every day,” Brooksby said about comparing himself to his first finals appearance.
Brooksby owned the first set of the match against Tiafoe. Brooksby grabbed the early 3-0 lead. It wasn’t until the fourth set that Tiafoe took his first game. Starting with a 100-mph ace, Tiafoe went on to cut into Brooksby’s lead 3-1. Although Tiafoe showed promise, Brooksby breezed by Tiafoe to win the next three games and claim the first set.
Though not typically his focus, Brooksby excelled on the serve throughout the match. He dropped just 15 points on serve, taking advantage of Tiafoe’s poor performance behind the line, who made only 45% of his first serves in the match.
The final set proved to be a more competitive one.
The first game started with more energy from both Tiafoe and the crowd. Tiafoe took the early lead going up 30-0; however, Brooksby responded quickly, making the game 30 all. Brooksby continued his domination early, building his lead to 2-0. Tiafoe would get his second game win of the night, outlasting Brooksby in the third game and cutting the lead to 2-1. The next game would be Brooksby’s, sealed by a 99-mph ace to lead 3-1.
Despite being down, Tiafoe still had the crowd’s heart. After the roaring applause, he opened the next game with an ace. Tiafoe battled back to get the win and make the set 3-2.
Although Tiafoe’s performance was getting better, Brooksby refused to take his foot off the gas. With a spike making the game 40-15 and an ace sealing the game, his lead was up 4-2. Tiafoe took the next game to make it 4-3 and keep the competition alive. Brooksby took the lead 40-15 in the eighth game. A 102-mph ace by Brooksby sealed the next game to put his lead at 5-3. Tiafoe won the next game with a 128-mph serve. He went on to win and cut the lead to 5-4.
Tiafoe jumped out of the gate to get the first point of the set’s final game, but an out-of-bounds shot helped bring Brooksby back into the game and put the score at 15-all.
Not shaken, Brooksby took the 40-15 lead after an excellent serve. Tiafoe stayed in it with an out-of-bounds hit by Brooksby. Tiafoe powered back for deuce. Tiafoe has the advantage after an out-of-bounds hit. The back-and-forth battle continued after errors and out-of-bound hits on both sides. With the crowd fired up, Brooksby took the game and set.
Seven of Brooksby’s points on serve came from the final game of this set after Tiafoe earned his first and only breakpoint and saved five match points before Brooksby powered through to collect the win.
“I definitely had some more nerves towards the end of the second set, especially in that game as well,” Brooksby said. “You know, I knew he’d compete hard to try to get the break back in that game. The biggest challenge for me in games like that is really just to relax and not really think out there and just loosen up my game.”
HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
HYOSUB SHIN / AJC
Brooksby will face No. 3 seed and 2019 champion Alex de Minaur in Sunday’s final.
“I’m going to treat the preparation and how I need to focus out there the same as it is for any other match,” Brooksby said. “But also, you know, that also reflects a little bit on the last two [matches] and I think I’ve had a couple experiences with that now, and that’ll only help me for tomorrow.”
De Minaur punched his ticket to his second Atlanta Open final with his 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 win over Ilya Ivashka. Interrupted due to a rain delay, the first set proved to be challenging for both players. De Minaur took off with a quick 3-0 lead. However, Ivashka pushed through to take the next three and tie the set. After the storm, Ivashka broke away to take the set. But de Minaur handled Ivashka in the second set for a 6-2 win and similarly took the third set.
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